In the jungle, the mighty jungle

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Before you ask, no, we did not see any lions sleeping or otherwise, but we did pet a baby wildcat. adorable. we have just returned from a weekend in the jungle, about 3 hours away from huancayo. we left on thursday, and made a stop in the reputed "largest caves in south america" complete with pre-incan and post-incan graffiti and a stalagmite in the shape of the virgin mary. apparently, the virgin mary was 3 feet tall, beige and lumpy. we arrived in san ramon/ la merced and the hotel, in case anyone was wondering, was beautiful, had a giant pool and these delicious drinks called machu piccu. so the helping the orphan thing is going well, haha.
on friday, there was a slight change in itinerary, as we decided to follow some 16 year old named william into the jungle. when he used the phrase "indiana jones" i dont think we appreciated how raiders of the lost ark it would be (katryna). it was pretty much mountain climbing except without any of that pesky safety equipment they require in canada. we followed the river to many small waterfalls, which was where william proved most useful. he would perch impossibly on the top of a 10 foot waterfall and calmly lift the unfit gringas to the top using only one hand. elaine (another volunteer) was most impressed. it was really beautiful there, and it was nice to leave the city and enjoy the jungle at the base of a picturesque waterfall. we will post pictures later, i suppose. after that, we visited an "indigenous community," the home of the baby wildcat. it was obviously geared towards tourists, and as we left we heard a telephone ringing and saw one of the women walking back to her house in streetclothes, her shift over. next up was the botanical gardens, where everything either promotes fertility, or is hallucinogenic. we may come back to canada with multiple children and the walls melting. after dinner we went to a discothek. the guide with a machete was hilarious and definitely knew his stuff. this is the point william left us after hanging out for the day. if we thought that we were too white to dance in canada, its a million times worse here we just dont seem to have the hips. it was great fun, and kristina developed a love for cocktails made with pisco, an peruvian grape brandy. although andrea went home at 3:00, kristina decided to stay out until 4:30, something she later regretted.
at 9:00 sharp on saturday, breakfast was served and it was off to another waterfall. This one required less death defying, but the waterfall was bigger, and so gorgeous. we walked back to the truck, to find william sitting in the back of the truck, having walked from his house and bearing oranges for all. eventually it was time to go home, and we said goodbye to william, the pretty hotel and the jungle.
since we were 9 people in a 5 seater truck, we were required to sit in the bed of the pickup. the views were wonderful, but after a while it started to rain. funny thing about mountains, at 4200 meters, it tends to get a little cold. the views were still wonderful, although clouded by snow, and we added to the festivity by singing christmas carols. we made it out with all 10 fingers,so all is good. all in all, it was probably the best 50 or so hours that kristina had ever spent in her life, although andrea missed the kids, who would of thought it.
hope all is going well at home, happy mothers day to our moms, and we miss everyone.
kristina and andrea

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